Weyco Group, Inc.

Thank you for standing by. My name is Gail and I will be your operator for today. At this time, I would like to welcome each and every one of you to the Waco Group Inc. First Quarter 2025 Earnings Release Conference Call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question and answer session. If you would like to ask a question during that time, simply press star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, kindly press star one again. It is now my pleasure to turn today's call over to Waco Group Inc's CFO, Judy Anderson. Please go ahead.

Thank you. Good morning and welcome to Waco Group's conference call to discuss first quarter 2025 results. On the call with me today are Tom Florsheim, Jr., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and John Florsheim, President and Chief Operating Officer. Before we begin to discuss the results for the quarter, I will read a brief cautionary statement. During this call, we may make projections or other forward-looking statements regarding our current expectations concerning future events and the future financial performance of the company. We wish to caution you that these statements are just predictions and that actual events or results may differ materially. We refer you to the section entitled Risk Factors in our most recent annual report on Form 10-K, which provides a discussion of important factors and risks that could cause our actual results to differ materially from our projections. These risk factors are incorporated herein by reference. They include, in part, the uncertain impacts of US trade and tariff policies which remain highly dynamic and unpredictable, the impact of inflation on our costs and consumer demand for our products, increased interest rates, and other macroeconomic factors that may cause a slowdown or contraction in the US or Australian economies. Overall net sales for the first quarter of 2025 were $68 million, down 5% compared to $71.6 million in the first quarter of 2024. Consolidated growth earnings were 44.6% of net sales for the quarter compared to 44.7% of net sales in last year's first quarter. Operating earnings totaled $7 million, down 15% from $8.3 million in the first quarter of 2024. Net earnings were $5.5 million, or 57 cents per diluted share, for the current quarter versus $6.7 million, or 69 cents per diluted share, in the first quarter of last year. In the North American wholesale segment, net sales were $54.3 million for the quarter, down 4% compared to $56.2 million last year. Higher sales of our Floreshine brand were more than offset by lower sales of our other major brands. Wholesale gross earnings were 39.4% of net sales compared to 39.6% of net sales in last year's first quarter. Wholesale selling and administrative expenses totaled $14.8 million for the quarter and $14.9 million last year. As a percent of net sales, wholesale selling and administrative expenses were flat at 27% in both 2025 and 2024. Wholesale operating earnings decreased 10% to $6.6 million for the quarter from $7.4 million in 2024 due to lower sales. Net sales in our North American retail segment were $8.7 million for the quarter down 12% from record sales of $9.8 million in 2024. The decrease resulted mainly from lower sales on the BOGS website due to reduced promotional activities in 2025 compared to strong BOGS website sales in the first quarter of last year. Retail growth earnings as a percent of net sales were 66.6% and 65.3% in the first quarters of 2025 and 2024, respectively. Retail operating earnings totaled $600,000 for the quarter, down 52% from $1.3 million last year. The decrease was primarily due to lower sales. Our other operations historically include our retail and wholesale businesses in Australia, South Africa, and Asia Pacific, collectively referred to as Florsheim, Australia. We ceased operations in Asia Pacific region in 2023 and completed the wind down of that business in 2024. Accordingly, first quarter 2025 results of the other category only reflect the operations of Australia and South Africa. Florsheim Australia's net sales were $5.1 million, down 7% from $5.5 million in the first quarter of 2024. The weaker Australian dollar relative to the US dollar contributed to this decrease. In local currency, Florsheim Australia's net sales were down 3%, due mainly to the closing of Asia Pacific, partially offset by higher sales in Australia. Net sales in Australia were up 6% in local currency, with higher sales in both its wholesale and retail businesses. Floorshine Australia's gross earnings as a percent of net sales were 62.7% and 60.2% in the first quarters of 2025 and 2024, respectively. Floorshine Australia generated operating losses totaling $200,000 for the quarter, on $400,000 last year. The improvement was due to higher sales in Australia. Over the last several weeks, the US government enacted a broad range of reciprocal and retaliatory tariffs, collectively referred to as incremental tariffs, on goods imported into the United States. Including these incremental tariffs, the current effective total tariff rate on goods sourced from China which is where we source a majority of our products, is 161%, up from 16% in 2024. While the incremental tariffs did not impact our first quarter 2025 performance, unless withdrawn, these tariffs will significantly increase our cost of goods sold in future periods. To mitigate the impact of tariff cost increases, We have negotiated cost reductions with several of our Chinese suppliers and are planning to raise selling prices beginning in summer of 2025. We are also accelerating our efforts to diversify our sourcing. At December 31st, 2025, our cash and marketable securities totaled $77.9 million, and we had no debt outstanding on our $40 million revolving line of credit. During the first three months of 2025, we generated $4.1 million of cash from operations. We used funds to pay $2.5 million in dividends and repurchased $700,000 of our common stock during the period. Additionally, pre-funded dividends of $21.6 million were paid to shareholders in January of 2025. We also had $400,000 of capital expenditures during the quarter. We estimate that 2025 annual capital expenditures will be between $1 and $2 million. On May 6, 2025, our board of directors declared a cash dividend of 27 cents per share to all shareholders of record on May 16, 2025, payable June 30, 2025. This represents an increase of 4% above the previous quarterly dividend rate of 26 cents. I would now like to turn the call over to Tom Florsheim, Jr., Chairman and CEO.

Thanks, Judy, and good morning, everyone. Our overall net sales were down 5% for the quarter. We began the year facing significant geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainties, which include evolving U.S. trade policies, recession concerns, and market volatility. These factors have affected both consumer and retailer confidence, resulting in declines in our wholesale and direct-to-consumer businesses. BOG sales declined 5% for the quarter. On a positive note, we saw more typical winter weather in January and February, with cold temperatures and precipitation across much of the country. This helped our bogs retailers work through existing inventory, which we expect will create opportunities for new product in the second quarter and the second half of the year. As mentioned in previous calls, we remain very bullish on our innovative seamless construction, which is lighter and more durable than comparable vulcanized products currently in the market. We are also excited about new spring products like the Boga Clog, which has arrived at retail and is off to a solid start. Our combined legacy business was down 3% in the first quarter, with Florsheim up 7%, Stacey Adams down 7%, and Nunn-Bush down 16%. The declines in Nunn-Bush and Stacey Adams reflect the current softness in non-athletic footwear at retail as consumers remain cautious with their discretionary spending. In tandem with this, many of our wholesale partners are maintaining conservative inventory positions, which has impacted our shipments. In light of this challenging environment, Forsheim's performance was particularly strong. The brand continues to gain market share with robust sales across a range of categories, including hybrid refined casual footwear, which we view as a significant growth opportunity going forward. Net sales in our retail segment were down 12% for the quarter. Last year, we drove significant e-commerce volume through promotions, particularly with bugs, to elevated inventory levels. In 2025, our inventory is more aligned with demand, and we've scaled back promotional activity, which has contributed to the decline in sales. That said, we continue to invest in data-driven tools to position our e-commerce business for long-term growth. Florsheim Australia's net sales declined 7% for the quarter, or 3% in local currency. Similar to the U.S., Florsheim Australia's markets, which include South Africa, New Zealand, and the Pacific Rim, are facing economic headwinds. Despite the challenging environment, we are encouraged by the improvement in Florsheim Australia's first quarter operating results, as well as a 11% increase in same-store retail sales. we remain focused on managing expenses and identifying opportunities for profitable growth. Our overall inventory as of March 31st, 2025, was 68.2 million, compared to 74 million at the end of December 2024, and 62 million at March 31st, 2024. While our inventory levels are down from year end, They are higher than normal for this time of year as we were proactive in expediting a large amount of inventory before the incremental tariffs went into effect. This put us in a good inventory position such that we were able to temporarily halt our China imports during this tumultuous period as we evaluate plans to mitigate the anticipated future impact of the tariff cost increases. Our overall gross margins were 44.6% for the quarter. and 44.7% last year. Given the uncertainty around tariffs, we cannot predict their impact on our margins. We are closely monitoring the situation and are also expecting to increase our prices. Despite the tariff-related uncertainties we face, we are confident in our abilities to successfully manage the situation. Our history of strong operational execution particularly in the management of our supply chain and price-setting strategy, underscores our proven ability to withstand a turbulent environment. We are hopeful that in overcoming these challenges, we will be able to pick up additional market share in the long run. This concludes our formal remarks. Thank you for your interest in Waco Group, and I would now like to open the call to your questions.